5.  The applicant was born in 1955 and lives in Achkhoy-Martan, Chechnya. She is the mother of Balavdi Ustarkhanov, who was born in 1982.
6.  The events described in the application took place in Zakan-Yurt, in the Achkhoy-Martan district of Chechnya. At the material time the village of Zakan-Yurt was under the full control of the Russian federal forces. Military checkpoints manned by Russian servicemen were located on the roads leading to and from the settlement. The area was under a curfew.
7.  At the material time the applicant and her son Balavdi Ustarkhanov lived in Achkhoy-Martan, Chechnya. On 31 December 2002 Balavdi Ustarkhanov went to Zakan-Yurt to celebrate the New Year holiday with his friend, Mr Magomed M. On the same day he had a fight with local residents and received several cuts. He was taken to a local hospital where his cuts were treated and a bandage was placed around his head. Balavdi Ustarkhanov subsequently decided to stay with his friend's family in Zakan‑Yurt for several days.
8.  On the night of 6 to 7 January 2003 (in the submitted documents the date was also referred to as the night of 6 January 2003) Balavdi Ustarkhanov stayed at Mr Magomed M.'s house at 72 Shkolnaya Street in Zakan-Yurt. The household consisted of two dwellings; one belonged to Mr Magomed M. and his family, and the other to the family of his uncle, Mr Makhadi M.
9.  At about 6 a.m. a large group of armed men in camouflage uniforms broke into the household. Some of them were wearing masks. Those who were not wearing masks were of Slavic appearance. The men neither introduced themselves nor produced any documents. They spoke unaccented Russian and were equipped with portable radio sets. The residents of the household thought that they were Russian military servicemen.
10.  The servicemen told everyone that they were looking for a person who was on the authorities' wanted list. They conducted an identity check and took away the passports of Mr Makhadi M. and Mr Magomed M. On completion of the check the servicemen were about to leave when one of them asked Balavdi Ustarkhanov why his head was bandaged. The latter explained that he had arrived at his friend's house for the holidays, that he had been hit with a sharp object and that his cuts had been treated at the local hospital. The serviceman then called someone via his portable radio set and reported that there was a man in the house who had not been registered as a resident and that his head was bandaged. The officer was ordered to take Balavdi Ustarkhanov away.
11.  When Balavdi Ustarkhanov's friends asked the servicemen why they were taking him away, the officers said that they were just going to check what Balavdi was doing in the house. The servicemen took Balavdi Ustarkhanov outside without shoes or warm clothing. There they put him in one of the military vehicles parked next to the house: there were a military UAZ car, a minivan and an APC (armoured personnel carrier). The vehicles then drove away in the direction of the local checkpoint, manned by the Russian military forces.
12.  The passport of Mr Makhadi M., which had been taken away by the abductors, was found some time later in the vicinity of Zakan-Yurt, on the road to Grozny, across the street from the Russian military checkpoint.
13.  According to Mr Magomed M.'s neighbour, Mr I.A., who lived across the street, at about 5 a.m. on 7 January 2003 he and his relatives had seen from their windows two vehicles and a large group of armed servicemen, who spoke unaccented Russian. Some of them wore helmets; they were equipped with portable radio sets. The servicemen were standing next to their house and talking. One of the officers noticed the family car parked in the yard and asked Mr I.A's granddaughter whose car it was. When the girl responded that the car belonged to her uncle, the son of Mr I.A., the servicemen went into the house, dragged Mr I.A.'s son outside and started beating him with truncheons. Mr I.A. started screaming for help and begging the servicemen not to kill his son. Then one of them called someone via his radio set and said that they had apprehended three men, one of whom was not a local resident. Mr I.A. heard someone on the radio instructing the servicemen to leave the locals alone, to take the stranger with the wounded head and to leave the place. According to Mr I.A., he saw from his house a GAZ vehicle and a UAZ vehicle parked next to the house of his neighbour Mr Magomed M. After the servicemen left, Mr I.A. learned from his neighbours that the servicemen had taken away their guest, Balavdi Ustarkhanov. Mr I.A. was not questioned by the authorities about the events.
14.  According to a relative of Mr Magomed M., Ms B.M., at about 5 a.m. on 7 January 2003 she had seen a group of armed military servicemen entering the house of her relative Mr Magomed M., which was situated in the same yard. The servicemen were in camouflage uniforms; they spoke unaccented Russian and used portable radio sets. She heard the servicemen explaining to someone by radio that there was a person in the house who had not been registered as a resident and that this man had been wounded in the head. The response received by the servicemen was: “Take him and leave”. When the servicemen were leaving the house she heard the noise of military vehicles. Many local residents had gathered in the yard shortly after the abduction. Ms B.M. was not questioned by the authorities about the events.
15.  According to the applicant, a number of other witnesses to the abduction refused to provide statements to the Court out of fear for their safety and that of their relatives.
16.  In support of her statement, the applicant submitted an account by Ms B.M. dated 31 August 2008 and an account by Mr I.A. dated 31 August 2008.
17.  The Government did not challenge most of the facts as presented by the applicant. According to their submission “...the reason for the opening of the criminal case was the complaint of Kh. Ustarkhanova received by the Achkhoy-Martan district department of the interior on 7 January 2003, according to which at about 6 a.m. on the night between 6 and 7 January 2003 unidentified armed men in camouflage uniforms and masks had taken away her son B. Ustarkhanov from a house at 72 Shkolnaya Street in Zakan-Yurt in the Achkhoy-Martan district of Chechnya”.
18.  In the morning of 7 January 2003 Mr Magomed M. informed the applicant about the abduction of Balavdi Ustarkhanov. On the same day the applicant went to the Achkhoy-Martan district department of the interior (the Achkhoy-Martan ROVD) and the Achkhoy-Martan district prosecutor's office (the district prosecutor's office) and complained about her son's abduction.
19.  On 21 January 2003 the district prosecutor's office instituted an investigation into the abduction of Balavdi Ustarkhanov under Article 126 § 2 of the Criminal Code (aggravated kidnapping). The case file was given number 44011.
20.  On 23 January 2003 the district prosecutor's office granted the applicant victim status in the criminal case.
21.  On 21 March 2003 the investigators suspended the investigation in the criminal case for failure to establish the identities of the perpetrators.
22.  On a number of occasions, that is on 22 March, 13 and 24 June, 17 July and on 25 August 2003, in January, 3 April, 14 May and 7 June 2004 and 16 July 2005 the Chechnya and the district prosecutors' offices informed the applicant that the investigation in the criminal case had been suspended for failure to establish the identities of the perpetrators and that operational-search measures aimed at identifying the culprits were under way.
23.  On 12 May 2003 the military prosecutor's office of the United Group Alignment (the military prosecutor's office of the UGA) forwarded the applicant's complaint about Balavdi Ustarkhanov's abduction to the military prosecutor's office of military unit no. 20102.
24.  On 7 June and 15 August 2003, 22 April, 31 May and 29 December 2004, 10 June and 22 July 2005 the Chechnya prosecutor's office forwarded the applicant's complaints to the district prosecutor's office for examination.
25.  On 11 June and 20 August 2003 the military prosecutor's office of military unit no. 20102 informed the applicant that her complaints did not contain any information demonstrating the involvement of Russian military forces in the abduction of Balavdi Ustarkhanov.
26.  On 15 July 2003 the Chief Military Prosecutor's office forwarded the applicant's complaint to the Chechnya prosecutor's office.
27.  On 2 February 2004 the military prosecutor's office of the UGA informed the applicant that her complaint had been examined and the theory of the involvement of the Russian military forces in the abduction of Balavdi Ustarkhanov had not been confirmed.
28.  Upon the applicant's request, on 24 February 2004 the interim Chechnya military commander requested the military commander of the Achkhoy-Martan district (the district military commander) to take measures to establish the whereabouts of Balavdi Ustarkhanov.
29.  On 13 April 2004 the Department of the Prosecutor General's office in the Southern Federal Circuit informed the applicant that her request had been forwarded to the Chechnya prosecutor's office.
30.  On 20 November 2004 the applicant wrote to the district prosecutor's office. She stated that her son had been abducted by a group of armed men who arrived in an APC. The applicant expressed her version of the events, stating that those who had abducted her son must have belonged to the State power structures. She requested to be provided with information concerning the progress of the investigation and asked for the proceedings to be resumed.
31.  On 11 July 2005 the Chechnya military commander requested the district military commander to take measures to establish the whereabouts of Balavdi Ustarkhanov.
32.  According to the applicant, the investigators failed to question the neighbours of Mr Magomed M. who lived across the street from the crime scene and who had witnessed Balavdi Ustarkhanov being taken away in military vehicles.
33.  The Government submitted that on 21 January 2003 the district prosecutor's office had opened criminal case no. 44011 into the abduction of Balavdi Ustarkhanov under Article 126 § 2 of the Criminal Code (aggravated kidnapping). The applicant was informed of this on 23 January 2003.
34. On 21 January 2003 the investigators examined the crime scene at 72 Shkolnaya Street in Zakan-Yurt. Nothing was collected from the scene.
35.  On 23 January 2003 the applicant was granted victim status in the criminal case and questioned. She stated that she lived in Achkhoy-Martan. On 30 December 2002 her son Balavdi Ustarkhanov had gone to visit his friends, the family of Mr Magomed M., in Zakan-Yurt. On 3 January 2003 she had been informed that on the night between 31 December 2002 and 1 January 2003 her son had been involved in a fight with local teenagers, as a result of which he had sustained a head injury. On the same date, 3 January 2003, the applicant had gone to Zakan-Yurt and taken her son to a hospital, where it was established that he had sustained concussion. The family of Magomed M. was troubled by the fact that Balavdi had received the head injury while he was their guest and they therefore asked him to stay with them until he felt better. The applicant agreed and returned to Achkhoy-Martan, while her son remained at the friends' house. On 7 January 2003 Mr Makadi M. had arrived at her house and told her about the abduction of Balavdi by unidentified armed men in camouflage uniforms and masks, who had failed to explain the reasons for their actions. The investigators questioned the applicant again on 28 February 2003; no information was submitted by the Government concerning the content of the statement given on that date.
36.  On 31 January 2003 the investigators questioned Mr Makhadi M., who stated that he lived at 72 Shkolnaya Street in Zakan-Yurt; the household comprised two dwellings in one yard: his house and the house of his nephew, Mr Magomed M. At the end of December 2002 Balavdi Ustarkhanov had arrived at Magomed M.'s house to celebrate the holidays. On 7 January 2003 a group of about ten unidentified armed men had broken into their yard. The men were wearing camouflage uniforms and masks. At first they went into Magomed M.'s house, and then came into his house. The men, who spoke unaccented Russian, checked everyone's passports and took away his passport. After the identity check the men had left with Balavdi Ustarkhanov in an unknown direction. At some later point he found out that the men had arrived at his house in a grey UAZ vehicle and a tented ZIL lorry. According to the witness, he had complained about the abduction of Balavdi Ustarkhanov to the Achkhoy-Martan ROVD and informed the latter's mother.
37.  On 10 February 2003 the investigators questioned Mr Magomed M., who stated that he lived at 72 Shkolnaya Street in Zakan-Yurt, in the same household as his uncle Mr Makhadi M. In 2000 he had lived temporarily in Achkhoy-Martan as a forced migrant, where he had befriended a local resident, Balavdi Ustarkhanov. At the end of December 2002 Balavdi had arrived at his home for a visit. On the night between 31 December 2002 and 1 January 2003 he and Balavdi had been involved in a fight between local youths. As a result Balavdi had received head injuries from a heavy object. He had asked Balavdi to stay in his house until he felt better. At about 6 a.m. on 7 January 2003 a group of about ten armed men in camouflage uniforms and masks had entered his house. The men refused to introduce themselves; they checked his identity documents and the documents of Balavdi Ustarkhanov. Then, without providing any explanations, they ordered Balavdi Ustarkhanov to follow them; they also took his passport. The armed men then went into his uncle's house, where they also conducted identity checks and took away Mr Makhadi M.'s passport. After the men left the house, he learned that they had driven around in a grey UAZ vehicle and a tented ZIL lorry without registration numbers.
38.  On 12 February 2003 the investigators requested that the military prosecutor's office of military unit no. 20102 and the Criminal Search Department of the Ministry of the Interior in the Southern Federal Circuit inform them whether they had arrested or detained Balavdi Ustarkhanov. According to their responses, these agencies had not arrested or detained the applicant's son.
39.  On 12 February 2003 the investigators ordered the Achkhoy-Martan ROVD to question staff at the military checkpoints in the vicinity of Zakan‑Yurt in order to establish the vehicles which had passed through them on the night of the abduction and to take operational measures to identify the perpetrators of the abduction. According to the ROVD's reply of 19 February 2003, no information concerning the abductors' vehicles was available at the checkpoints and no information concerning the identities of the abductors had been obtained.
40.  On the same date, 12 February 2003, the investigators requested that the Operational Group of the Ministry of the Interior provide information on whether they had conducted a special operation on 7 January 2003 and whether they had detained Balavdi Ustarkhanov. According to the response of 25 April 2003, this agency had neither conducted any special operations on 7 January 2003 nor detained the applicant's son.
41.  On 15 February 2003 the investigators forwarded a number of requests to various prosecutors' offices in Chechnya, requesting information about the possible arrest and detention of Balavdi Ustarkhanov and the discovery of his corpse. According to the responses received from those offices, no such information was available.
42.  On 20 February 2003 the investigators ordered the Achkhoy-Martan ROVD to establish the witnesses of the abduction and question the neighbours of Mr Magomed M. about the circumstances of the crime.
43.  According to the Government, between 22 and 25 February 2003 the investigators questioned nine residents of Zakan-Yurt, who provided similar statements concerning the abduction. None of them had witnessed the events; all of them had learnt from fellow villagers that at about 7 a.m. on 7 January 2003 a group of armed masked men in camouflage uniforms had abducted a young man who had been visiting Mr Magomed M. and that this man had been taken away in a UAZ vehicle and a ZIL lorry without registration numbers.
44. On 27 February 2003 the investigators requested that the Achkhoy‑Martan district department of the Federal Security Service (the Achkhoy-Martan department of the FSB) inform them whether they had any information which discredited Balavdi Ustarkhanov. According to their reply of 20 March 2003, no such information was available.
45.  On 27 February 2003 the investigators forwarded a number of information requests to various detention centres in the Northern Caucasus. According to their responses, Balavdi Ustarkhanov was not detained on their premises.
46.  Between 5 and 19 March 2003 the investigators questioned eight residents of Achkhoy-Martan and on unspecified dates they questioned a further twenty residents of Achkhoy-Martan, all of whom provided similar statements concerning the abduction. None of them had witnessed the abduction; all of them had found out from their fellow villagers and Khava Ustarkhanova that at about 7 a.m. on 7 January 2003 a group of armed masked men in camouflage uniforms had abducted the applicant's son, who had been visiting his friend in Zakan-Yurt.
47.  On an unspecified date the investigators obtained information that the applicant had been approached by an intermediary, who had offered to assist her in establishing the whereabouts of Balavdi Ustarkhanov and obtain his release in exchange for 6,000 US dollars. During an informal confidential conversation with the investigators the applicant confirmed that she had been approached by the intermediary, but refused to provide his name saying that in the search for her son she and her relatives had resorted to the help of military servicemen and civilians who could have had information about the whereabouts of Balavdi Ustarkhanov.
48.  On 1 March 2008 the investigators again questioned the applicant, who stated that some time after her son's abduction a man had come to her house. He had refused to introduce himself and told her that if she paid 6,000 US dollars, he would bring her son home. The applicant had agreed to pay the sum only after her son had been returned. Three days later the man had come over again, but she had not been at home. The applicant had never seen this man again.
49.  On 14 March 2008 the investigators suspended the investigation in the criminal case for failure to establish the identities of the perpetrators and informed the applicant of this.
50.  On 4 May 2008 the decision to suspend the investigation was overruled by the supervising prosecutor, the proceedings were resumed and the investigators were provided with instructions on the steps to be taken in the proceedings.
51.  According to the Government, although the investigation failed to establish the whereabouts of Balavdi Ustarkhanov, it was under way and all measures envisaged by national law were being taken. The investigation was suspended and resumed on several occasions, and has so far failed to identify those responsible for the abduction of the applicant's son.
52.  Despite specific requests by the Court the Government did not disclose any documents from criminal case no. 44011. They stated that the investigation was in progress and that disclosure of the documents would be in violation of Article 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, since the file contained personal data concerning the witnesses or other participants in the criminal proceedings.